Robot 6

Rob Liefeld looks to revive ‘Brigade,’ with help from Kickstarter

Borrowing a page from Top Cow’s 2012 resurrection ofCyber Force, Rob Liefeld has turned to Kickstarter to help relaunch his 1990s Image Comics series Brigade. His goal is to raise $17,500 in order to offer the first issue for free; in less than 24 hours, he’s already generated $6,775 in pledges.

Debuting in 1992, Brigade was a spinoff of the bestselling Youngblood, featuring a rogue mercenary team led by Battlestone. Following the initial miniseries, it continued as an ongoing for 24 issues, ending in 1995. The property was last resurrected in 2010 as “a complete re-imagining of the original smash series” by the original team of Liefeld and Marat Mychaels, but only one issue was released.

On the Kickstarter page, Liefeld writes that, “The cast and concept of Brigade have been radically updated and re-imagined and I’d like everyone to get a copy for free! […] A FREE comic breaks through all barriers and crosses all ages, a free comic provides a risk-free experience that can create a doorway into a new world of imagination and wonder. Brigade with its fresh, bold direction and characters will provide a dynamic comic book experience for readers old and new.”

Pledge incentives include an Extreme Swag Bag, signed variant covers, a signed hardcover collection and a signed screenplay. The campaign ends June 15.

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Comments

50 Comments

9mocoxix3

Jesus S!

I love Rob Liefeld’s older stuff, but the artwork just looks kind of flat for this series. Is he penciling it? I do have to admit I like the idea and the characters, especially Kaboom . . . I’m sure it will succeed and I’m totally getting a copy when it does come out . . . but I hope the final art is a lot more detailed.

R.Nav

Steve

Bob

I know it’s Rob and all and I should expect this, but the OCD in me is going bonkers over that picture of the girl in red under the video. Chest proflie on her right side and line towards chest center indicate that she has small breasts, yet the contour of the red on the tunic doesn’t follow it at all and indicates a perfectly flat chest.

Yeah I know it’s a minor stupid error, but cannot unsee.

David Fullam

organic_halcyon

Ok, so how many issues will be released until Liefeld cancels the book because:

– he insults the co-writer or the artists
– the inkers and co-artists have enough of doing the whole finishing job on the pencils for him
– he is not satisfied any more with the current company
– he fights with the current company about the owner rights

nWoJeffDW

Can someone help educate me on this whole Kickstarter thing? I just find it incredibly odd that creators would ask the fans to pay for a project. If the creators believe in the project so much, why don’t they fund it themselves?

But I don’t know. I just don’t understand it. Can someone explain? What’s the appeal for fans to give money?

Scott Hall

Stephen B.

You know, for someone who totally loathes Liefeld’s “style,” not to mention his bizarre religious conversion moment and his homophobic remarks about Rictor and Shatterstar, I do like some of the spirit of this. I just wish this was more of a Prophet/Glory relaunch than a Liefeld-first vanity relaunch.

You know… Rob’s done a pretty good job resurrecting some of his old properties. Prophet. Avengyline. Glory. Youngblood. Shoot, even Erik Larsen’s current run on Supreme is pretty enjoyable. So best of luck to him on this title too.

Still, if he’s the one illustrating… I don’t know if I’d be the first in line to buy it. Then again, I’m not necessarily the target audience.

Wait, so correct me if I’m wrong, but this doesn’t mention ANYWHERE who the creative team is, does it? Is Liefeld drawing it, or just doing concept art and covers? Is Liefeld writing it himself, and if not, who is? Add onto that that Liefeld’s career is littered with dozens upon dozens of projects that either never came out or only ever released one issue, well, why would anyone want to back this?

Fact Man

Derek Burns

I Dunno. Rob Liefeld has always been a guilty pleasure in the comics world for me. I rather enjoyed everything hes done. I can see the other side and why some people feel the way they do, but I’m a fan.

I do have fears of this not being completed though. There have been so many unfinished (and unstarted) stories and series…

It depends from project to project. But most campaigns run almost like you’re pre-ordering a book (or whatever they’re producing). So, your “pre-order” allows the artist/writer/whatever to fund the print run and/or creation of the product something frequently too expensive to do on your own (most of us don’t have thousands of dollars sitting around not already earmarked for other things).

What you get out of it is the product you would have gotten if you bought it in the store at a later date (but frequently with extras such as sketches, numbered editions, signed editions, etc.). It’s also a way for fans to feel that they are contributing directly to the kind of projects they’d like to see/material they’d like to read, instead of allowing the traditional publishing model (etc) to make that decision for them.

There are flaws to the system of course, and I think we’ll see how things like Kickstarter adapt and develop over time, but it’s actually kind of amazing. Of course, I’m horribly biased.

Alton

This is basically the same comment I left on the CBR news thread on this topic.If a number of relaunches of previous Liefeld projects are out there earning money then why does he have to go to Kickstarter to finance this project? This in my opinion is not what Kickstarter was intended for.I would support any new up and coming creative team but not established artists who can go out and find financing elsewhere.With the number of nineties copies of Brigade including multiple relaunches and stupid variant covers abandoned in dollar bins all over the world does this title have a hope in hell of being successful? Who wasn’t buying those copies then and who would buy it now?

Alex

Why? He’s knows people in the industry and still has a little influence. He’s got Youngblood and Prophet going at Image, the mighty company he co-founded and put out the first book from at huge sales. Doesn’t make sense. I’m not even going to mention what I heard he made for a movie script he did in the 90s for an unproduced project called ‘The Mark’ starring Will Smith, who was really big back then. It’s a lot of money, certainly enough to produce a comic book and get a distributor.

Reality Calling

-To date Liefeld has yet to complete any project or have a story make any sense
-Supposedly he has the money to fund this himself which is a red flag to me. He has been known to take the money and have nothing come of it.
-In a case like this there is no protection for anyone pledging. He prints one issue or none and cancels the whole thing he WILL keep the money. He’s Rob Liefeld. Google him about his track record.
-No one will feel sorry for you when he does leave the project high and dry.

I like the guys art less and less but he’s proven to be an ignorant ass when not confronted face to face. I’ve begin to wonder if he has a mental disorder and if he does he should get some mental help asap.

Carloshll726

Carloshll726

Anonymous

Y’know, it’s great that everyone can be a snarky asshole about this. Good for you guys! You’re showing him who’s boss! You’re right, the man shouldn’t have the right to make a living! If you don’t like Rob, just don’t pick up the free first issue. It’s not like he’s taking the food out of the mouth of other creators – this is his own creator-owned series being published through his own imprint. He’s actually helping the industry because he’s going to need to employ more people to finish the book; I guarantee he’s not coloring, lettering, etc. The free issue might keep the book around longer, which means those people are employed longer, and god knows they need the work because if you work in this industry, you’re usually hopping from freelance project to project just keep yourself fed every month. But no, you don’t like his art style so fuck him and everything he does, right? Seriously, it’s not like anyone is forcing you to read this book. Also, I’ll bet 90% of the people posting know who Rob is because of that piece of shit “40 Reasons to Hate Liefeld” site, and you think you’re being witty and funny by substituting their opinion for your own. Good for you, ya bunch of sheep.

Harry Krinkle

Carloshll726

Sam

I’m not a hater of Liefeld by any means and I know there are some people that enjoy his stuff.
But does anyone else remember in 2010 when he relaunched a rebooted Brigade as an ongoing series? Sounded like it was alot like what he’s promoting here. Except that was an ongoing that only released 1 issue then vanished. So maybe he might get two out this time?

suitifiable

Okay. We’ve all had our fun at Liefeld’s expense and all. I’m not gonna say anything about that stuff that we all know. But…isn’t Liefeld kinda rich? I mean, I heard as much. Isn’t Liefeld kind of connected in the industry?

Now, I ain’t saying rich connected people shouldn’t use Kickstarter. But producing and distributing a comic is not that expensive compared to other products. I mean, what more “accessible” than making it free digital? What does THIS book have that would otherwise not get published?

I would advise Rob Liefeld to instead direct his crowd-sourcing capacity and clout towards finally adapting one of his comics to live action. He’s been talking about that kind of thing for years, and it feels to me like a more worthy cause that a bunch of free issues of a book no one care about.

defcon prime

In 2008 I met Liefeld sitting in artists alley at NYCC. I asked Him about the future of the extreme universe of characters. And he said BIG THINGS are planned (this was after the Young blood movie tease on some other comic news site)…..well other than Young blood, Prophet, one issue of Brigade…..still waiting

Will IMAGE UNITED come free too?

giuliano

Carloshll726

PeterCSM730

I bought the Brigade on-going once upon a time and I liked the characters but they kept getting killed off over and over again until it was a completely different team I didn’t care about. And looking at this line-up I don’t recognize any of these characters.

Carloshll726

chupacabra2013

Ok,PLEASE stop the “haters are going to hate” nonsense.
The man got lucky so did the other Image boys in the 90s,aot of people made money,some stuff was good some was bad BUT since then everyone of those artists have developed their styles,Liefeld is stuck in his,in fact hes regressed.
Look at Lees style from then til now,hes grown as an artist,look at Liefelds….zilch.
Its not hating,its just fact,he sucks.
Now you can say its style but come on,25 years later and he still doesnt understand perspective,he still drawn clenched fists at an angle that seems impossible,he still can draw women.25 years of practice and no growth as an artist.
And yes he has money but hes no fool,would you invest your money in something thats just a vanity project?

PietroMaximoff

Snappy

Brigade, the original Image comic was one of the worst comics I ever saw. Even in the 90s haze that a lot of people liked and then look back and hate on, Brigade stood out as bad i its day.and I liked some of Liefeld’s other stuff from the period and still do sort of. Didn’t the artists eventually get fired off of it after issue 3, which was, I believe particularly bad?

Carloshll726

Andy Austin

How much you want to bet the comment left by Anonymous is Rob himself? He has been know to do this type of thing before. I wont bother going over and over how bad his artwork is his body of work just proves that. I just take issue with the ego he has.One just needs to read his quotes” I did what I was hired to do. I take over art duties sales go up book saved from cancellation.” Really Rob the book was going be cancelled anyway they hired you to do a job. So you did not save said book it got cancelled anyway. I know this is hard for you to understand Rob but all artist evolve over time. You need to get some training your stuff is the same as it was over 20 years ago. You were rehashing cover art for Hawkman from an old Xforce cover. I know you drew both but really try something different . I am artist I am the same age as you and had about the same training and I know I can still use more training and my work is better now then it was back 20 years ago. I would also point out if anyone would go back through Wizard magazine you can see all the ego that Rob is. He said this things he cant just pretend he did not.

chupacabra2013

Im still at a loss why he has such ardent fans,yes he created Deadpool but remember back when Image was at its high point,did you hear anything from Liefeld regarding Deadpool? Of course not.
If Brigade is to succeed and yes it will make its target but If it is to succeed it has to be done well,not a rehash of junk we’ve seen year in year out.
Ill say this much,he is a super dynamo when it comes to hyping the medium,none come close but if he put just 10% of that enthusiasm into his art,he will win my vote.